Advice on Computer purchase

Hi all, I hope I am posting this in the right place.
My son is 14 years old and wants a computer that can handle making videos for you tube ( animation he makes them frame by frame). He does scripting on Mine Craft, and he also plays Maple Story. Maple Story is extremely laggy to play on my old, ancient computer. My son has $600.00 total for a tower. I have $100.00 in Amazon cards for a monitor ( not sure which to get). I am wondering if my wireless mouse and keyboard will be okay for now, or the mouse and keyboard from my old computer will work for now.



My son is against buying a barebones and building it with so little $$, he wants to save up for the next 3 years and then build his ultimate dream computer.

Any advice will be helpful!
Thanks!

 

Greetings, 1computerditz...

$600 can buy a pretty good OEM system now: for instance, this Asus Essentio CM1745-05 is one of the best bang-for-the-buck machines on the market. FYI, most OEM systems now come with a USB keyboard and mouse packaged with the machine.

Monitor-wise, the $100 at Amazon will only net you something like this Viewsonic 19" - frankly, I'd kick in a few extra bucks and jump up to a 22"-23" monitor.

Regardless: if you and your son are set on purchasing an OEM system now and building in the future, you should find a budget system that will perform the tasks that you specified with no problem. My caveat is to stick with name-brand, reputable manufacturers, especially since you're trying to find a good budget system - do not try to find some bargain hybrid on Craig's List or eBay.